We’ve all heard of body language, and how subtle actions can communicate how you’re feeling, or even what’s on your mind. You’d think hair wouldn’t be part of this semantic, but apparently, it falls under its own category of sending out signals.

Haircare and styling brand Kérastase got body language expert and author of What Every BODY is Saying, Joe Navarro, to elaborate on this topic, and his theory is pretty amusing.

Before you go and wonder why we need yet another form of communication, Navarro says that communication through your hair is important, as it is the one part of your body that’s never hidden, and cannot be ignored, “Hair demonstrates health, vitality and your sense of style. I can tell you that in an intimate setting, just the touch of the hair can account for an extraordinary amount of communication. I have seen people report that when ‘her hair touched my face, it was electrifying’. I would say at that moment, 100 per cent of that message came from the hair,” he explains.

Non-verbal communication is primarily the first form of interaction we learn, but often forget to observe as time passes by. According to Navarro, when you’re playing with your hair, twirling it while talking to someone, you are really content with the space you’re in with that person and enjoy their company. Running your fingers through your hair could mean you long for attention, and a well-maintained mane proves you care about your appearance.

Navarro, who is a former FBI agent, recollects how often women would pull down their hair over the eyes as they spoke, almost like a curtain, and this indicated that they were hiding something and were reluctant to talk. “Children often do this,” he says.

As for the rest of us, the only way to find out if we really are communicating through our hair is, the next time you twirl it mindlessly, ask yourself what’s playing on your mind. After all, everyone has a unique way of expressing themselves.